


We Dream Like Lions

by currv



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, First Time, Go Easy On Me, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Im not sure what to expect yet so idk what to tag this as, My First Work in This Fandom, Slow Burn, This is that lol, You know that feeling of your very first relationship, i am not a professional, i dont know where this is going
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-24
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:26:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26625148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/currv/pseuds/currv
Summary: The war is finally over, except Adora and Catra have been enemies for the last three years. Their relationship isn't going to change over night, despite Adora wishing they could move smoothly into the next chapter of their lives. Catra has some things to work out before allowing Adora to love her completely.A soft, fluffy, hurt/comforty story about how Adora and Catra's rekindled friendship awkwardly flourishes into deep romance. It gets intense.
Relationships: Adora & Catra (She-Ra), Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Bow & Glimmer (She-Ra)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 67





	1. We Dream Like Lions

**Author's Note:**

> Winding down from the climatic end of Horde Prime's terror, the Best Friend Squad decide to laugh their asses off in Glimmer's room and talk about what transpired through the day with some tea and cookies. But.... Where is Catra going to sleep now?

Just moments ago they were all laughing and rolling in the field of grass right after She-ra had restored magic to all of Etheria. The sun had just started to go down and the warm rays turned the yellow orange sky to a beautiful red and purple sunset. Glimmer had teleported everyone back to the palace in Bright Moon. She was full of giggles and unbridled energy. She skipped away from the group, pulling Bow by the arm and dancing with him in excitement. Adora watched wide-eyed, like a child who wanted in on the fun she was witnessing. She grabbed ahold of Catra’s hand who reluctantly held on as Adora began bouncing with excitement as well.

Catra smiled sheepishly, pretending to participate in the excited bounding. However, she couldn’t keep her eyes off the looming mural of Queen Angella that was suddenly before her. 

The euphoric feeling of saving the world wore off of Catra the moment she was transported into the palace. She looked at Adora. Looking at Adora was always met by a twisting knot in her stomach and her blood running cold, causing her hands and feet to tingle. The last few years she always thought it was jealousy and resentment. Although this feeling was the same feeling she always got when looking at Adora, Catra could tell that now this feeling was different. It started early on from the time they were on the ship after Adora had rescued Catra from Horde Prime. 

Catra felt happy. But it felt wrong at the same time. Adora’s smile and laughter was so assuring and comforting, but Catra felt like a foreigner in its presence, as if it was not meant for her to enjoy. 

“Catra?”

Catra looked up at Adora, not realizing that her gaze had trailed off to the mural of Angella again. She was lost in her thoughts and realized that everyone was suddenly looking at her. 

“What?”

“We asked if you wanted to go to Glimmer’s room for some tea and snacks,” Bow said, “We all had a big day, we should all unwind.”

Catra looked to Adora for some kind of go ahead signal. Although Catra had been accepted into the Best Friend Squad, being inside of the palace of Bright Moon was extremely discomforting and she felt invasive. Adora closed her eyes and smiled. “Um, yeah,” Catra shook her head, “That sounds great.” 

“Great!” Glimmer exclaimed, “I’ll meet you guys there, I’ll be back with all the goodies!” Without a moment's notice, Glimmer teleported away. Bow and Adora instantly took off racing down the hall, Adora shoving Bow out of the way with a giggle. 

“Hey, get back here Adora!” Bow shouted, taking off after her, laughing. 

Catra followed after them with a quickened pace, looking over her shoulder again at the mural of Angella. Angella’s gaze followed Catra all the way down the hall. 

Catra had lost track of Bow and Adora, however their playful teasing and laughing coming from the door around the corner gave their presence away. She timidly walked into Glimmer’s room, only to be startled by the sudden emergence from thin air of Glimmer with her arms full of stuff. Catra jumped out of the way with a yelp and quickly smoothed down the fur standing up straight on her tail. 

Glimmer had tea cups stacked on top of one another in one hand and a steaming hot kettle in the other. Bags of cookies and other snacks were tucked underneath her arm. 

“Out of the way! Hot water!” Glimmer boasted, waddling over to her dresser where she plopped down the contents within her hands. A tea cup tumbled over the edge, to which both Adora and Bow both dived down to grab it before it crashed to the floor. Instead, they bonked heads, followed by a shatter of the tea cup on the floor. 

“Ow, Adora, your head is so hard!” Bow whined, rubbing his forehead. 

Adora, unphased by the head bonking, was desperately trying to clean up the shattered teacup. “Aw, I’m sorry about your cup, Glimmer.” She tried to piece together the cup again, as if intending to mold it back together using her She-ra magic. 

“Adora, it’s okay, you don’t have to fix it,” Glimmer laughed.

Everyone was so high on the feeling of saving the world, it was amusing to watch them all interact. Adora laughed again, her face so red from laughing so much before, or maybe from just crashing skulls with Bow. Her stomach hurt and her cheeks stung, but this feeling is one that she has never felt before in her life. She never wanted it to end. She quickly shoved the shattered teacup under the dresser and instantly busted out laughing again. 

“What is so funny?! What is wrong with you?” Glimmer asked, kneeling down to grab the broken glass Adora just shoved under the furniture. 

“I… I don’t know,” Adora gasped between laughs. “I’m just… so relieved!” She fell backwards onto the floor, arms and legs splayed out. She finally took in a deep breath and relaxed, letting out a long sigh. 

Bow crawled closer over to Adora’s head, pointing at the large lump starting to form on her forehead, “Geez Adora, you gave me a headache, doesn’t your head hurt?” He was rubbing his head where a similar bump was forming right between his eyes. 

“I guess so,” Adora shrugged, bringing her hand up to apply pressure to her head, “Now that you mention it.” She winced a few times before sitting up, then a beam of light radiated from beneath her hand as she magically healed the infliction from her head. 

“Hey! Now fix my head boo-boo!” Bow begged. This triggered another laugh attack from Adora, as she plopped back down to the ground in a fit of giggles as Bow attempted to wrestle her hands to place on his head. He forced her hand onto his forehead, “Heal me, oh Magical She-ra Hand!” 

Adora snorted, taking in a deep breath, light radiated from her hand on Bow’s forehead. He sighed in relief and released Adora’s hands. 

Catra watched from the doorway, amused by their interactions. The way they interacted reminded Catra of her and Adora’s youthful antics. Adora looked up from the floor at Catra and that knot in the pit of Catra’s stomach came back. It was almost as if Adora’s stare propelled her forward, and Catra found herself walking toward the center of the room to join her and Bow on the floor. 

Glimmer poured everyone a cup of tea and passed them out. She set out a platter of snacks before them before sitting down on the floor herself. Everyone finally calmed down a little, taking small sips of their tea. Except for Catra. She tapped the side of her teacup with her claw a few times before sucking her teeth. The sudden silence was not as comforting to Catra as it was to everyone else. 

“Hm?” Glimmer mumbled, looking up from her tea to look at Catra, “Was there something you wanted to say Catra?”

“Oh, no, I--”

“So Catra, Adora,” Bow interrupted, “Are you two going to tell us what really happened in the Heart of Etheria?” 

Catra felt her face get hot and she hoped they could not tell how flushed she was feeling by the look on her face. Adora was quick to pipe up and divert the attention away from Catra’s reaction. 

“Gosh, Bow, so much happened….” Adora began. Her tone was suddenly very somber and serious. “I don’t even know where to start.”

“Shadow Weaver is dead,” Catra said matter of factly, with no emotion. 

There was no reaction from anyone in the room. Just deafening silence. 

“Don’t worry, it’s a good thing,” Catra huffed with a slight smile, “at least I think so.”

“She saved our life…” Adora said, as if she was still trying to convince herself that it happened. 

“Shadow Weaver was selfless? That’s hard to buy,” Glimmer scoffed, chewing down harshly on a cookie. Catra gave a little laugh in agreeance. 

“Well, she did,” Adora said bluntly, as if trying to defend Shadow Weaver. Her wavering expression showed her conflicting feelings however. “I am grateful, but…” Adora looked to Catra. Catra quickly looked away with a furrowed brow. “I am more grateful for someone else.”

Maybe that was the right thing to say, as Catra’s expression softened slightly, much to Adora’s relief. 

“So, you able to transform into She-ra and activate the fail-safe? But how did it happen? Give us the details, Adora!” Bow gleamed, eager to move on from the depressing topic of Shadow Weaver’s questionable sacrifice. 

“Pff, of course,” Adora smirked. She looked to Catra once again, suddenly flooded with the memories of their kiss. Butterflies swarmed in her stomach and tickled her heart. “I couldn’t have done it without Catra,” Adora said quietly, suddenly very bashful. Her face burned and her cheeks hurt from the smile she couldn’t make go away. Catra looked at her, astonished, as if she was afraid of Adora spilling their secret. Was it supposed to be a secret? Catra wasn’t sure. It only happened like an hour or two ago, they didn’t have a chance to talk about what it meant, yet. Catra felt her face heating up again too and her ears laid flat against her head. What was she so scared of?

“Okay…” Glimmer said, looking back and forth between Adora and Catra. “What’s going on here.” She shoved the rest of the cookie in her mouth and looked over to Bow. Bow knew what was happening, as he had his hands up to his beaming and toothy smile. He eagerly awaited for Adora to continue. He was shaking in anticipation. 

“Nothing, Sparkles, nothing is going on--” Catra started. 

“Catra kissed me,” Adora beamed, and Bow immediately erupted into an excited squeal. 

Glimmer spit out the cookie in her mouth, spewing crumbs all over the remaining snacks in front of her.

Catra quickly pulled her legs to her chest and hid her face between her knees. 

“All I remember is some crazy dream… I must have gotten knocked out from something. But I heard Catra’s voice, and…” Adora looked over to Catra again, “Catra are you okay?”

“Huh? Yeah! I’m fine!” Catra squeaked, poking her head upward. She was sweating, looking to Bow and Glimmer. 

“Catra, did you like Adora this entire time?!” Glimmer shouted. Catra couldn’t tell if she was angry or not, and instinctively crawled backward a little. She relaxed at the sound of laughter coming from Bow and Adora. 

“Oh, it all makes so much sense now!” Bow said. 

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Arrow Boy,” Catra hissed. 

“Catra didn’t just like me, she said she loved me the entire time, guys,” Adora said in a mocking baby voice. Her and Bow erupted into laughter again. 

“I thought you were going to die, too!” Catra shouted, tears stinging at the corner of her eyes. Everyone suddenly went quiet and Catra quickly wiped at her eyes with her arm and sniffed quickly to suppress the sudden emotion that emerged within her. 

“Catra…” Adora began, concern washed over her face.

“It’s not funny,” Catra pouted. “I wasn’t about to watch you die without you knowing how I’ve felt about you all this time. I know it must be so funny to you guys that I have feelings deep down inside me. But you weren’t there! It was terrifying! I was at a complete loss at what to do, you weren’t waking up and things were getting worse!” 

“So you kissed her back to life!” Glimmer teased.

“Glimmer, stop…” Adora whispered. 

Catra was breathing heavily and her chest heaving. Her vision began to blur and she squeezed her eyes tightly. Hot tears threatened to spill down her cheeks, but Catra refused to break down in front of everyone. The compilation of everything that had happened over the last few weeks suddenly finding their way out through raw emotion. 

“Catra, we are not making fun of you,” Bow began. Catra opened her eyes and began working on calming herself down with her breathing. Ugh, how embarrassing. 

“I also thought Bow was going to die…” Glimmer began. “I had to make sure I told him I loved him too.” 

Catra looked to Glimmer and saw tears in her eyes as well. Great, just a bunch of cry babies up in Bright Moon. Catra scoffed, embarrassed by her display of emotion and by Glimmer’s attempt to empathize. 

“We are only giving you a hard time because it was so obvious,” Bow’s voice was so deep and mature sounding. Adora looked at him, puzzled. 

“Was it that obvious? It surprised me…”  
“Adora, no offense, but you aren’t that great at picking up hints,” Glimmer laughed, wiping away her own tears. 

“Offense taken!” Adora whined, “It’s not my fault. I tried for years to get across to Catra… I was confused as to whether or not to give up hope, that when she was finally on our side, I was just so happy to see her everyday that I guess I was oblivious to anything else. Not to mention I was kind of focused on taking down Horde Prime!”

It was Catra’s turn to finally laugh. Adora visibly relaxed and smiled at the sight of Catra laughing. “Oh Adora, you’re such an idiot,” she whispered. 

Adora laughed in return. 

“So, what does this mean, then?” Glimmer smiled, scooting closer to Catra. 

Catra and Adora just stared at each other. That knot in Catra’s stomach grew again and she felt her hands begin to tingle. Catra cleared her throat. 

“It doesn’t mean anything,” Catra said.

Adora’s face fell. Bow and Glimmer’s face followed shortly after. 

“We were always taught in the Horde that interpersonal relationships were not to be pursued--”

“News flash, Catra, we aren’t in the Fright Zone and it no longer exists!” Glimmer shouted again. 

“Yeah, Catra, you’re in Bright Moon now, and we bring on the romance full force!” Bow matched Glimmer’s volume. 

“Gahh, stop shouting!” Catra scowled. 

“What does this mean for you two, then?” Adora asked, looking to Bow and Glimmer. 

Glimmer immediately blushed, looking away with a smile. 

Bow’s eyes widened in excitement, realizing what was happening. His heart started beating rapidly and he flailed his arms and legs excitedly. “Glimmer! Do you know what this means!” He launched himself forward and wrapped his arms around Glimmer. 

“What does it mean, goofball?” Glimmer hugged him back tightly, laughing uncontrollably. 

“We can start going on dates as boyfriend and girlfriend!” Bow beamed. 

“Boyfriend and girlfriend? I could get used to that,” Glimmer smiled. 

“Finally! I have had so many date ideas!” 

Adora returned her attention over to Catra. Catra was idly pulling at the threads of the rug on the floor, deliberately trying not to look at Adora. Adora wanted to crawl over to Catra and hug her tightly just as Bow and Glimmer were doing, but her comment earlier about how their kiss didn’t mean anything didn’t sit right with her. She has come to realize a lot of things Catra says tends to be the opposite of what she means, but it was hard for her not to take her words so literally this time. Her euphoric feeling suddenly came crashing down and replaced with an agonizing fatigue. She reached her arms up to stretch, letting out a yawn. 

“Boy, I sure am sore after saving the world,” Adora said, trying to keep some pep in her voice to not draw any concern to her mood that is beginning to spiral. “How about I leave you two love birds alone for the night and I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Sure, Adora. You deserve all the rest in the world,” Glimmer mumbled, tiredness beginning to surface through her voice as well. Adora’s yawn caused Glimmer to yawn. 

“Nooo, stop it, it’s contagious,” Bow protested, but succumbed to the dreadful yawn as well. 

Catra scrunched her face. She was immune to yawns and refused to show any sign of being tired. Sleep was the last thing on her mind. 

Adora yawned again and all except Catra stood up. Adora looked awkwardly at Catra, unsure of what to say. She was waiting for Glimmer to offer a room for Catra to stay in as she wasn’t even sure if there was another spare room to offer. 

Catra picked up on the implication of the silence. “Don’t worry, Adora. Go to sleep, I’ll find somewhere to make a bed. I have some things…. I need to think about. Don’t wait up for me.”

“Oh, Catra, don’t be silly, we have a spare room for you,” Glimmer said, “Adora, why don’t you show her, it’s just a couple doors down from your room.”

Adora smiled warmly and reached out her hand to Catra. Hesitating, Catra reached for her hand and helped herself up, smiling sheepishly. They left Glimmer’s room and began walking down the corridor toward Adora’s room. The sun had completely set now and the palace had an eerie silence to it. Adora paused as they reached a door and it seemed that she was pondering something before opening the door. 

“Come on, you can stay here tonight,” Adora said in the quietest voice, as if she was trying not to wake anyone up. Catra followed her into the room. It was a pretty bare room compared to Glimmer’s, there was just a bed and a dresser. Except, there were items in this room that looked familiar. Some of Adora’s clothes were thrown half haphazardly in a corner and some knick-knacks that only Adora would collect were on the dresser. Some pictures of Adora with Bow and Glimmer were taped up onto the wall by the bed. 

“This is your room,” Catra said very bluntly.

“Yes, it is,” Adora confirmed. 

An awkward silence followed. 

“I just said I had some things I need to do… I wasn’t planning on going to sleep just yet,” Catra grumbled. 

“Then I’ll stay up with you!” Adora protested.

Catra looked at her. She had dark bags under her eyes and her eyes were glazed over. She had troubled keeping her eyes open and was rubbing at them as another yawn sneaked out. 

“You need to rest, Adora,” Catra smiled. She carefully reached out her hand to cup Adora’s cheek. Adora’s eyes fell shut and she leaned into Catra’s hand, finding solace and comfort in her touch. A big goofy smile spread across her face. 

“Rest with me,” Adora’s eyes opened ever so slightly, and hesitantly she reached out her hands to rest them on Catra’s hips. 

Catra panicked and quickly grabbed Adora by the wrists to instead hold her hands. “No, Adora… I need a moment for myself before I am ready for bed. I’ll come back when I’m ready.” Catra knew she probably wouldn’t be back to sleep in Adora’s room that night, but if the empty promise would get the sleepy girl in front of her to go to bed, then so be it. 

“Okay,” Adora pouted. “I’ll let you go.”

Another awkward silence. 

“Okay,” Catra said. 

“Catra…” 

“Adora?” 

“Did it really not mean anything?” 

“I… Adora…” Catra stammered, “Of course it meant something.” 

“Do you promise?”  
“I promise.” 

Adora blinked, unsure if she was satisfied with the answer or not. She let out a pout again and trudged over to her bed. 

“Okay… I’ll see you in the morning then, Catra.” 

“Good night, Adora,” Catra smiled. Adora didn’t turn around and instead plopped right into her bed. Within seconds, she was snoring loudly as she finally surrendered to fatigue. 

Catra slipped out of the room without a sound. 


	2. Warm in the Frost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora and Catra take a walk, but the weather turns sour. They have a chance to talk about what happened, but it doesn't exactly go how Adora had planned.

The very moment the sun’s rays begin poking through Adora’s window, her eyes shot open. A habit that Adora has never been able to quit was rising the moment the sun did. She got up and went through the motions of her morning routine. Brush teeth, brush hair, put on clean clothes. In her private bathroom attached to her room, Adora splashed some water onto her tired face using the sink. She looked at herself in the mirror, and suddenly remembered the night before. She looked to her bed, sad to not find Catra sleeping beside her. 

On the way back after rescuing Catra from Horde Prime, once Adora was able to get Catra to warm up to being on their side, they had slept together on the ship. In the same bed, curled up into one another. Since being back together again, Catra never slept far from Adora. Adora had hoped that nothing would have changed since the war was officially over. Deciding not to overthink it, she put her hair up into her traditional ponytail. 

Adora made her way down to the war room where she saw Bow waiting, just like every morning just a few months ago before Horde Prime’s arrival. Glimmer was always a late riser, so the two of them would always have a moment for themselves before the start of the day. Adora always used this time to get good friendly advice from Bow.

“Good morning, Adora,” Bow said. He was absolutely in a chipper mood. 

“Morning, Bow. What’s on the agenda today?”

“Well… “ Bow pondered. “There is a lot on the agenda. The war may be over, but there is a lot to be done. Reforming horde soldiers and rebuilding destroyed cities. It’s going to take a lot of time and we need to focus on getting a team together.”

“Assembling a team will be easy,” Adora said, “just tell me where to go and She-ra will take care of everything.” Adora flexed her arms, raising an eyebrow at Bow. 

“Yeah, that’s the easy part. The work is going to be hard. Especially in rebuilding Salineas. Catra and Hordak really did a lot of damage to the city and I think it should be one of our top priorities. But we’ve got this!”

Adora didn’t say anything. She didn’t like to associate Catra with destruction, but the fact of the matter is that it happened and it needs to be fixed. 

“Where is Catra, I thought she would be with you,” Bow questioned. 

“I… don’t really know. I didn’t look for her this morning.”

“I’m sorry about all the teasing last night,” Bow slowly began. He set aside his tracker pad and turned to face Adora. Adora gave him a puzzling look, so he continued, “I was trying to get Catra to loosen up a little bit, but she just looked so uncomfortable. What really happened in the Heart of Etheria when you two kissed?”

Adora chucked and looked away, slightly embarrassed. “It all happened so fast, Bow. She said she always loved me. I can’t explain to you how it made me feel, I guess the moment she said she loved me, everything about… me, and how I feel… about her… it just all clicked and I told her I loved her too. Because yeah… I guess I did, I mean, I do…” Adora rambled on. This feeling was all so new to her and she had never considered the implications of her true feelings toward Catra before. She never had the time to think about it before, considering they were enemies for the better part of three years. 

“Why is she acting so weird?” Bow questioned. 

“Is she acting weird?” Adora was clueless as ever. 

“Have you ever seen two people in a romantic relationship before?”

“Yeah, Bow! I know about Netossa and Spinerella!” Adora protested. She paused. 

Oh… Oh, okay. Now it makes sense to her.

“Does this mean we are together now?” Adora asked with a small smile and a hopeful tone. 

“If that’s what you and Catra want for each other, but… it sounds like you both are a little confused about what you want,” Bow returned the smile, reassuring Adora. 

“Well, I’m not confused,” Adora insisted. Right? She didn’t think she was confused. She loves Catra and wants to be around her and… kissing her again would be nice. Could she do that all the time now? “Are you and Glimmer confused…?”

“Not at all,” Bow’s eyes got big with excitement, “It’s weird, Adora. I feel like I had been waiting all my life for Glimmer to say she loved me. I wanted to tell her before, but then she became queen and the timing was awful! So, I waited… and when she said she loved me, I knew instantly our relationship was about to change.” 

Adora nodded her head along to what Bow was saying, trying to compare what had happened between her and Catra. She guessed she was a little confused after all. Bow and Glimmer had been friends this whole time, her and Catra… were not. But they were now, and Catra was working on being a better friend. So why wasn’t Catra as excited about their relationship changing into something more…?

Bow noticed Adora wasn’t responding and getting lost in thought. He smiled and reached out his hand, placing it on top of Adora’s. “You should talk to her, Adora. Sooner rather than later.” 

Adora smiled, stifling a nervous laugh, “You’re right, Bow. Thank you.”

She leaned over and pulled him into a tight hug. She was so grateful to have a friend like Bow. 

As if on cue, Glimmer and King Micah both walked into the room. Glimmer was in the middle of telling her dad some elaborate story when she stopped, seeing Adora and Bow both hugging each other. 

“What’s going on here, is everything okay?” Glimmer asked. 

“Yeah, we were just talking about some stuff,” Adora sighed, smiling at Glimmer. “Hi, King Micha, how are you?” 

“I can barely move!” Micha exclaimed, “I was just telling Glimmer her old dad can’t keep up with you youngins, I am so sore!” 

“Bow, what’s the plan for today?” Glimmer smiled. Adora noted a sparkle in her eye when she spoke to Bow. Had Glimmer always looked at Bow this way? 

“Well, I was telling Adora, there is a lot of work that needs to be done… But if you ask me,” Bow stretched his arms over his head,”I feel sore too.”

Everyone nodded in agreement. The battle yesterday took a lot of effort out of everyone and their bodies were spent, even after a good night's rest.

“Taking one day off as a break won’t hurt, wouldn’t you agree, dad?” Glimmer said. 

Micah whined in agreement, rubbing his lower back. 

All this talk about being sore made Adora realize her legs were burning. She shakily stood up, grunting a little from the effort. 

“Glad we are all in agreement,” Glimmer groaned, rotating her neck from side to side to stretch. “How about we all meet here tomorrow morning and attack what needs to be done head on.” 

“I’m going to go find Catra,” Adora said quietly. Bow and Glimmer gave each other knowing smiles. 

“Have fun,” Glimmer teased. 

==

Adora decided to go back to the spare bedroom to see if Catra was there after all. Much to her surprise, curled up in the smallest ball under the covers, Adora saw Catra’s tail slowly swaying back and forth as it hung from over the side of the bed. 

“Hey, Adora,” Catra mumbled. How did she know Adora was there? She hadn’t even stepped into the room yet. 

“How did you know it was me?” Adora asked.

“I’ve gotten used to the sound you make when you pop your head in to look for me,” Catra said, referring to all the times Adora would walk into the room Catra was in when they were returning from Horde Prime’s ship. 

Adora rubbed the back of her head, “Sorry…”

“It’s okay,” Catra popped her head up from under the covers. Ever since her hair had been cut short, she would wake up with the wildest bed head. She looked really tired. 

“Did you sleep well?” Adora asked timidly. 

“I actually just crawled in here a few minutes ago… I didn’t sleep at all last night.”

“Oh,” Adora paused. 

Awkward silence. 

Adora cleared her throat. 

“Did you need anything?” Catra yawned. 

“No, no,” Adora quickly said, “I’ll leave you to sleep. You look exhausted.”

Catra looked down at the floor. More awkward silence. 

Adora turned to leave, when Catra stopped her. 

“Adora, wait…”

Adora looked over her shoulder. 

“Can you…. Will you stay, for just a moment,” Catra said tentatively, sitting up right in her bed. 

Adora could feel her heart starting to race. “Yeah,” she said quietly. 

Catra looked at her and slowly blinked her eyes, smiling. She looked like she was about to fall over and pass out. She patted the space on the bed next to her. 

Adora slowly began walking over to her bed and sat down where Catra had motioned her to. They looked at each other for a moment. Holding her breath, Adora slowly reached out her hand to smooth out Catra’s hair. Catra mewled in response, closing her eyes and leaning into Adora’s touch, mirroring the way Catra had touched Adora’s face last night. A slow purr emitted from Catra’s throat. 

Adora giggled in a really cute way that made Catra open her eyes again. Adora was blushing.

“Can we talk about what happened?” Adora blurted out. “Um, yesterday?”

Catra stopped purring, “What’s there to talk about?” 

Adora pulled her hand away to fidget with her fingers in her lap. She blushed a deeper red, “I guess… I guess I’m just confused.”

Awkward silence. 

Catra laid back down, “You’re always confused,” she grumbled. 

Adora huffed, “I am not!” She redirected her attention to the window. The sun was completely up now and the birds were beginning to chirp. Today was the first day in a long time that there wasn’t a pressing sense of urgency to do something. There was no enemy to go take down. Adora had so much pent up energy inside her, she felt like she needed to do something. 

“I just thought… that maybe things were going to be different between us. But in a good way. Right now it just feels… strange. Is everything okay between us?” Adora looked back over to Catra. Her eyes were closed and her chest was rising and falling so slowly. “Catra?”

Catra let out a soft snore and turned her head away from Adora. She was out cold. Adora sighed. She was hoping a quick conversation would help alleviate her confusion, but with Catra being so tired from not getting any sleep, a conversation is out of the question at the moment. 

An internal conflict began within Adora. She wanted to let Catra rest, but at the same time, Adora couldn’t bear to go a moment longer without knowing what Catra was thinking. She had to know what their relationship meant now. Were they going to remain friends? When Catra said “I love you”, did it mean what Adora thought it meant? Of course it had to, why else would Catra have kissed her? All of this was so foreign and new to Adora and she did not want to overstep any boundaries lest Catra decide to run away again. 

“Catra?” Adora tried again, a little more sternness to her voice. 

Catra didn’t stir. 

Adora grunted and grabbed hold of Catra’s shoulders, shaking her a few times until her eyes shot wide open.

“A-Ador-ra-! What--!” Catra was wide awake now and Adora pinned her down by the shoulders to the bed, hovering above her just inches away from her face. “What are you doing?!” Catra huffed, irritated now. 

“Catra,” Adora began, a slight whine to her voice. “We need to talk.” 

“Well, I’m awake now! Ugh,” Catra shoved Adora off from on top of her and jumped out of the bed. She reached for her clothes that were hung carefully on a chair in the corner of the room and began getting dressed.

Adora felt bad not allowing Catra to sleep, but she justified it by entertaining the thought that maybe she could coax a tired Catra into falling asleep early with her… in her room. Was that a bad thing to wish for? Adora cleared her throat, “I’m sorry, Catra… I just feel like my head is swarming.”

Catra finished pulling up her leggings, and looked to Adora with a soft expression. It put Adora at ease. 

“Take me somewhere,” Catra said so quietly, Adora almost didn’t hear her. 

“Take you somewhere, what…. What do you mean?” Adora asked. 

“Show me around Bright Moon, idiot. I could only do so much exploring by myself last night.”

“Is that why you were up all night? You were exploring Bright Moon?” Adora raised an eyebrow. 

“I like to be aware of my surroundings,” Catra shrugged. “Besides, I don’t want you to unpack everything you have in that big head of yours in the palace. Let’s get some breakfast first before we go, though. I’m starving.”

“My head’s not big….” Adora pouted, sitting up from the bed. Catra giggled and walked out of the room, Adora following right behind. 

== 

There was a place just outside of the Whispering Woods that had rolling hills and fruit trees. Glimmer had referred to it as a harvest land used primarily in the fall seasons. If Adora remembered correctly, Glimmer called it an Orchard. Adora had only been here a few times before, but found that it provided a sense of solitude and privacy for whenever Adora needed a break from the Palace. Not very many people of Bright Moon lived out here aside from the farmers, but since the invasion of Horde Prime and his army, Adora wasn’t sure if there was anyone out here anymore at all. 

The sun was high in the sky now, indicating it was noon. As her and Catra were walking down the pathways that winded between the many apple trees, Adora noticed that the ground was littered with rotting apples and the trees were completely bare of any fruits.

“That's odd,” Adora noted, being sure to step out of the way of the apples on the ground. “Usually this time of year the apples are still on the tree.” 

“It’s usually not cold this time of year either,” Catra said, shivering. “Does Bright Moon have a completely different climate than the Fright Zone or something?” 

“I guess it is kind of cold,” Adora agreed, noticing the light layer of frost that covered the leaves on the trees. It glistened in the sun’s rays and made everything look wet and damp. 

Catra aggressively rubbed her arms, trying desperately to get herself to stop shivering. Adora frowned and without giving it much thought, started to take off her red jacket. She handed the jacket over to Catra, “I know it's not much, but maybe it will help.” Adora felt the brisk air hit her core and a shiver ran up her spine. 

Catra sneered at the jacket, rejecting it at first, but Adora persisted. She snatched the jacket and threw it on. It helped stop the cold air from nipping at her skin a little but, but Catra was still shivering. She tried burying her chin and nose into the collar of the jacket to help warm herself up.

“I didn’t realize it was going to be cold today,” Adora laughed. “Maybe we should find somewhere to get out of this cold.”

“Ya think?” Catra snarked. 

Their walk turned into a quicken pace as they raced quickly up the path. The path led them to a small barn-- it looked more like a broken down shed-- but Adora figured it would be warmer inside than it would be out here. 

They entered into the small barn. It was like a small house that Adora remembered seeing in that abandoned town in the Whispering Woods, when all the people were scared away by First One’s projections. Catra slammed the door behind them and sighed loudly in relief. 

“Thank the stars,” Catra groaned, “It’s actually warm in here!”

“I’m sorry,” Adora apologized again, “The weather is so weird today.”

“Stop apologizing so much. Look, what's that in the corner?” Catra pointed to a black cast iron stove in the corner that had a pipe leading out and through the ceiling. A stack of chopped wood was piled beside it.

“I donno,” Adora shrugged. 

Catra bounded over to the object. “It looks like a wood stove. Let’s try turning it on and get it warm in here.” Catra reached for the door and opened it, a cloud of black ash flowing out straight into her face. She swatted at the air in front of her and started coughing. 

“Oh, is it like a fireplace? Bright Moon has lots of those in the palace. That must be what the wood is for,” Adora said, reaching for a log and throwing it in. Another plume of ash came flying out into Catra’s face.

“Hey watch it!” Catra screeched. 

“Ah! I’m sor--”  
“Shh! No more apologizing!” Catra groaned, wiping the soot off her face. She rubbed it deep into the fur on her face. Adora couldn’t help but laugh. Catra glared at her and reached out her hand, wiping some of the soot on to Adora’s cheek. 

“Hey! That’s not fair!” Adora cried. 

Catra laughed in return. She placed a few more logs into the stove and reached for a box of matches that were tucked behind the logs on the floor. She swiped a match and threw it into the stove. Slowly, the logs ignited. Catra shut the door, making a sound, pleased with her work. 

Adora sat down a few feet away from the stove. It took a few minutes, but she began to feel the heat emitting from it. Catra sat a few feet away from her, holding her hands out to the stove, hoping it would heat up faster. She was still wearing Adora’s jacket, and Adora couldn’t help but look at her. She looked really good in her jacket. It was a little big on her, so it draped over her shoulders unevenly and without the belt being buckled, it gave Catra a disheveled appearance. 

After a while, the room began to warm up and the only sounds that could be heard were the snapping and crackling of the wood in the stove. Catra sat back on the floor just a few feet away from Adora, wrapping her jacket tightly around herself and snuggling into it. Adora smiled. Catra noticed Adora staring at her and smiled back. 

This silence didn’t feel so awkward this time. 

“So, what did you want to talk about?”

Adora blinked a few times and she felt her heart rate quicken. 

“I, uh…” She looked over to Catra. Catra was staring back at her. “I wanted to talk about what you meant… when you said that you loved me.”

Catra snickered, “What’s not to get? I love you, idiot.”

Hearing it again made Adora smile.

“I guess it just kinda… hit me out of the blue.”

“Well, you said it back. Unless you didn’t mean it....”

“No!” Adora said a little too loudly, “Of course I meant it! I just meant… I never thought…” She readjusted herself. “I never thought of myself as someone that could be loved in that way, I guess.” 

“Pffff!” Catra laughed out loud, nearly slapping her knee. “You, Adora? Everyone loved you and you thought you weren’t capable of being loved? Give me a break….” 

“I never saw a purpose in having those feelings, so I guess when I had them…” Adora wasn’t quite sure how to phrase what she wanted to say. 

Catra waited patiently. 

“I’ve always felt a strange way about you Catra, but you know, and I know, those kinds of feelings were frowned upon in the Horde,” Adora clicked her tongue, frustrated at trying to find her words. “I just thought I had those feelings because we were best friends and nothing more.”

Catra didn’t say anything. 

“So when you said you loved me, it was like… everything suddenly made sense. Why I couldn't stop thinking about you, why I tried so hard to get you to join me in Bright Moon, why I never wanted to give up…” Adora gulped, unsure if she should keep going or not. 

“I understand,” Catra said, stretching out her legs. 

Adora waited for her to continue. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She wondered if Catra felt as nervous as she did. 

“I guess,” Catra began, “I guess I always knew. I always knew I loved you and I wasn’t confused about it. What confused me was trying to understand how you felt and if you felt the same way. Growing up together, I would always try to drop hints, but you’re so terrible at picking up hints. I just gave up after a while. And then when you left me…. When you left the Horde, I guess I just… I guess it just confirmed any suspicions I had that you might have felt the same way. I didn’t think there would be anything between us any more.” 

“I thought about you a lot,” Adora admitted. “I missed you every day since leaving the horde.”

Catra curled her lip at this. She found it hard to believe Adora missed that version of her, the one that went against Adora’s She-ra mission. 

The memories of Catra’s spiral into evil resurfaced and Adora felt tears starting to well in her eyes. 

“If you always felt this way, why didn’t you come with me. Why did you let everything that happened… happen?”

“Oh, come on, Adora! If you just dragged me out here to ask me why I destroyed the world, you can forget about it!” Catra’s voice started to rise. She instinctively stood up, pacing to the back of the room. She resisted the urge to open the door and just run away. But, Catra wasn’t going to run away from her problems anymore. At least, she wants to try not to. 

“That’s not what I am trying to say at all!” Adora whined. Catra cannot remember the last time she has heard Adora sound so… pitiful. 

“I was so mad at you, Adora!” Catra admitted. She didn’t mean to yell, but all her emotions erupted out of her chest and Catra felt the need to scream. “You left the Fright Zone for one night and you wouldn’t let me come with you, then all of the sudden you did a complete 360 on me! How was I supposed to feel?! We had a plan in the Fright Zone together, that’s all we ever knew, and you wanted to take a chance on two people you had just met?”

Adora noticed tears flowing down Catra’s face. Adora hadn’t seen Catra cry since they were kids until Catra’s recuse from Horde Prime. She cried non-stop once Adora was finally able to get through to her on the ship. Adora felt a pang of guilt not only from Catra’s words, but from imagining how Catra must have felt from their time as enemies. Adora could only ever think about her purpose and her mission and how Catra simply refused to follow her, but she never considered the reason why Catra never wanted to follow. 

“How come you felt like I betrayed you?” Adora whimpered, “I tried so hard to give you many opportunities to join our side.”

Catra started laughing through her tears. Adora could tell it was not a happy laugh. “You just don’t get it, do you? Why are you like this, Adora?” She rubbed at her eyes, wiping away her tears. 

Adora frowned, feeling hurt, but wanted Catra to continue. Maybe it would be good to let Catra vent some more. 

Catra sighed and walked back over to Adora, sitting down again. She had brought her knees up to her chest. Adora noticed Catra had been doing that a lot lately, drawing her body inward and holding herself, trying to make herself look small. “I’m sorry for snapping at you,” Catra grumbled. 

“What am I not understanding?” Adora asked. 

Catra squeezed her eyes tightly. Was Adora trying to be this dense on purpose? 

“All my life, I’ve been trying really hard to be seen as your equal…” Catra began slowly. “It wasn’t until we were teenagers, when you started getting stronger and… better than me. Everyone noticed your accomplishments and your strength, but I was always chasing your coattails…” 

Adora looked away from her and focused her attention to the small fire crackling within the stove in front of them. Adora had always known she got more recognition in the horde than Catra, but everytime she would try to talk to Catra about it, Catra would always say she didn’t care about that kind of stuff. 

“Then the one time I was given the opportunity to be the hero… to save the Force Captain Adora from being kidnapped from the evil Princesses… you told me right to my face I was wrong to want that. I was wrong to try and prove myself in your eyes. I felt rejected.” 

“Is that why you turned against me?”

“You turned against ME, Adora,” Catra spat. “Are you even listening to me?”

That awkward silence had made its way back. The air was thick. Adora tried to swallow the lump in her throat. 

“I guess I never thought to consider how you might have felt about all that… I just thought…” 

“Thought there was no good in me?” Catra mumbled.

“Of course not…” Adora said quietly. “I know there is good in you, Catra.”

There was a slight smile on Catra’s lips, “You might be the only one in all of Etheria that thinks that way.” 

“That’s not true! You have proved to Bow and Glimmer that you are good!”

“Oh, I’m so lucky,” Catra rolled her eyes. 

“Well, this isn’t necessarily how I had planned on today going…” Adora mentioned, rubbing the back of her head. 

“We had to talk about it sometime.” 

“Yeah… I’m really sorry.”

“What did I say about apologizing so much?”

“But I am! Listen to me, Catra,” Adora pleaded, turning to face Catra again. She reached out her hands to grab Catra’s, giving her hands a slight squeeze. She looked her directly in the eyes. “I am so sorry about everything that happened between us. I am sorry I left you in the horde, I should have fought harder to understand how you were feeling. I am sorry for turning against you and making you feel like I didn’t care about you.”

Catra had trouble maintaining eye contact with Adora and averted her eyes. She felt tears starting to well in her eyes again, but refused to let herself start crying again. 

“I’m sorry, too…” Catra began, her voice cracking. 

Adora pulled Catra in toward her and held her tightly against her chest. Catra felt the life being squeezed out of her, but buried her face into Adora’s shoulder nonetheless, enjoying the moment of intimacy. “It’s okay,” Adora whispered, “I know.”

Catra allowed herself to cry silently. Adora stroked the back of her head. It is hard to forgive Catra for everything she did as she allowed her hurt and anger to be inflicted onto others and the whole world. There is damage that Catra has done that cannot be repaired over night and she may never be forgiven by people for the things that she has done. But Adora knew a different Catra than the entire world did. She knew the soft and caring Catra that was capable of doing good, and Adora was prepared to allow that version of Catra that she knows and loves to flourish. 

Catra pulled herself back, sniffling. Adora quickly brought her hands to her face and wiped away those stubborn tears that Catra failed to hold back. She smiled fondly at her as Adora cupped her face in her hands. Adora pulled her face closer to hers, brushing their noses together. Catra froze and for a moment forgot how to breathe. She could tell Adora was hesitating. Catra laughed and brought her hands up to Adora’s wrists and closed the distance between them, pressing her lips against Adora’s. 

This kiss felt much different than their first. Adora’s lips were softer this time and she kissed her back with such liveliness. Catra could really feel herself melting into Adora this time, and she felt a purr of pleasure emit from her throat. Adora giggled and broke apart from Catra, but Catra grabbed Adora’s face and pulled her right back into another kiss. Adora let go of Catra’s face and braced herself as Catra pushed her back. She kissed her hungrily and with more desperation than she did when they were in the heart of Etheria. Years of pent up desire, Catra took in all of Adora that she could in this moment. 

Adora pulled away again, trying to catch her breath. At this point, Catra had nearly crawled on top of Adora, fighting to pin her down to the floor. Adora strained to hold herself up as Catra’s kisses had trailed to her neck. 

“W-wait, Catra,” Adora’s voice was trembling. Catra pulled away reluctantly with a growl. “Is it… is it snowing outside?”

Catra looked over her shoulder to look out the window Adora was looking out. Sure enough, snowflakes had begun accumulating at the window sill as they fell slowly from the sky. 

“What… but… I thought it only ever snowed in the Kingdom of Snows?” Catra’s senses started coming back to her. She pulled herself off of Adora and cleared her throat. Adora stood up and rushed over to the door, swinging it open, staring at the sky in disbelief. Catra was right. In all the time Adora had spent in Bright Moon, it never once snowed. Just yesterday it was so warm and pleasant. 

“Come on, we should head back to Bright Moon. I think something is wrong.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen... Writing is still a little rusty for me. I probably am not spending as much time editing it as I should have, but I just wanna get it out into the world. I know this chapter is pretty dialogue heavy.   
> I hope you enjoy the update. :D ALSO -- I am justifying the sudden change in weather based on my own actual climate. I live in the Northern US and we straight up had the weather go from 95 degrees down to 30 in ONE (1) day!!! I promise its plot relevant lmao...maybe

**Author's Note:**

> ** A/N ** Hello, I have never written an actual fanfiction in my life. My writing is a little stiff and rusty. But I hope you will enjoy this story regardless.  
> First chapters are my least favorite to write because I have no idea how to jump right into it. I'd love feedback on how you like the story so far!! :)


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